Merger as a Means to (Re-)Gain Office for Right-Wing Federal Parties in Canada

Like most other political parties, new radical right-wing parties generally aspire to public office in hope of implementing their policy preferences. As a consequence, they often seek to move away from the margins. One way for these parties to “go mainstream ” is through organizational change, for instance by adopting new party rules, policies, strategies or structures. The recent case of the Reform Party/Canadian Alliance in Canada provides an interesting illustration of the types of organizational changes that may be attempted by new radical right-wing parties in order to broaden their appeal. Founded in 1987, the Reform Party was a populist right-wing federal party whose roots were found mainly in Western Canada. The party’s rhetoric attacked the existing political institutions of Canada and proposed radical changes within the federal system. Despite some efforts to win seats outside of the West and across all Canada, the new party met with only modest successes in its first three federal elections (1988, 1993 and 1997). In the course of this period, the Reform Party was able to secure no more than 20 % of the national vote (and no more than 60 seats out of 301 in the House of Commons) and could not replace its closest competitor, the weakened but stil